Spherical scanning system with improved means of wide, adjustable scanning area

Abstract

A scanning system mainly consists of a condenser, a rotating mirror, and a ringlike lens. Collimating laser beams shine the condenser in designative position and the leaving beam combined to one powerful beam, or the leaving beams extremely close together. Therefore, the intensity increases greatly. Then, laser beams reflect on a rotating mirror. Along with the rotation of the mirror inside spiral, the mirror moves up and down along the appointed angle line in the effective range. After that, the beams refract in the ringlike lens. The direction of the mirror's normal and the position of the mirror change continuously, so the reflective beams can have different directions and leaving positions. The ringlike lens can refract the laser beams coming from the mirror with varied directions and positions because of the ringlike shape. This system can nearly cover whole space round it. In combination with all improved elements of the system, functions of wide, adjustable scanning area are achieved. To design, the system should require much more optics. Here, we lay emphasis on main parts of the system.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A spherical scanning system comprising: a. a condenser designed to combine reflected and refracted beams from parallel laser beams emanated from laser sources in order to increase the intensity of laser light;   b. a ring-like divergent lens having inside and outside concave surfaces; and   c. a rotating mirror positioned in optical alignment with said condenser, and inside and in coaxial relationship with said divergent lens, said rotating mirror being affixed in an inclined position at a lower end of a threaded drive screw which can be threadably moved up and down in a determined range to reflect the combined reflected and refracted beams toward said inside concave surface.   
     
     
       2. A spherical scanning system comprising; a. a conical condenser lens designed to combine refracted beams from parallel laser beams generated from laser sources in order to increase the intensity of laser light, said conical condenser lens having a small cone-shaped recess bored into its center, the slanted wall of the recess and that of the conical condenser lens being parallel to each other;   b. a ring-like divergent lens having inside and outside concave surfaces; and   c. a rotating mirror positioned in optical alignment with said conical condenser lens, and inside and in coaxial relationship with said divergent lens, said rotating mirror being secured in an inclined position at a lower end of a threaded drive screw which can be threadably moved up and down in a determined range to reflect the combined refracted beams toward said inside concave surface.